Unless one thinks of the ever-amusing singer Kinky Freidman, I can’t say I’m terribly familiar with Brooklyn Jewish people being heavily involved in country music. Enter charming Brooklynite Mimi Roman, whose voice was among the early pioneers of rockabilly. It’s a large collection at 35 tracks, but it’s worth every Continue Reading
Severine Day – Unsterblich EP
Severine Day hails from Belgium, and she produces an post-punk sound that brings up memories of bands like Siouxsie and the Banshees, French cold wave bands like Clair Obscur, and even a touch of Nico, but with a sound that is as modern as it is authentic. It’s a thrill Continue Reading
Abdel Halim Hafez – Mawood
Though it is always with great sadness that modern record labels who release spectacular vinyl editions don’t offer such releases on digital formats for sale, it’s a forgivable sin, as our dear friends at WeWantSounds continue to impress with their choices of artists they so lovingly reissue. Abdel Halim Hafez Continue Reading
Sula Bassana – Nostalgia
Though he have nearly 20 years under his belt with this band, I have to admit that I never heard David Schmidt’s music until this evening. Sula Bassana’s latest release, Nostalgia, is a gloriously slow wade into space rock. It’s heavy, sludgy, and exactly the sort of thing that I Continue Reading
Sound and Voice – That Which is Unknown
This has to be one of my favorite psychedelic folk releases since the heyday of bands like Charalambides. Merit Medrano is an Austin-based guitarist and leader of Sound and Voice, which is, apparently, his latest musical project, implying that he’s been a busy soul for some time now. The music Continue Reading
Various Artists – Ten Songs from Houshang Ebtehaj
Iranian poet and balladeer Hushang Ebtehaj passed away on August 10, 2022, but left an incredibly rich body of work. This compilation, released by Tehran-based record label Khosousi, brings together Ebtehaj’s best interpreters, such as Mohammad Reza Sharjarian and his son Homayoun,as well as Alireza Eftekhari, Hossein Ghavami, Mohammad Motamedi Continue Reading
Soyuz (Союз) – Force of the Wind (Сила ветра)
Belarus is not what one would think of as a Brazilian music hotspot, though, if my friends in the country could enlighten me to the local music scene, I would really appreciate it. Still, Soyuz, led by singer Alex Chumak blend a Brazil-meets-Santana-meets-funk beat and this album engages you quickly, Continue Reading
Dirty Three – Whatever You Love, You Are
The Dirty Three are Mick Turner, Jm White and Warren Ellis, and between them, they have worked with a who’s who of alternative music like P.J. Harvey, Bonnie “Prince” Billy, and Nick Cave among others. What’s most impressive about their sound, however, is that they can sew together angular post-rock with a Continue Reading
Jeff Gburek – Five Broke Downe Homesick for the Open Road Medley Blues
Fresh recordings have been delivered by Jeff Gburek, and there are a few more in the pipeline, apparently, so 2022 will be a busy year for one of the blog’s favorites. From Jeff’s Bandcamp site: “Five Broke Downe Homesick for the Open Road Medley Blues came to me as the Continue Reading
Gleb Kolyadin – The Outland
Gleb Kolyadin is the pianist of Russian progressive rock band iamthemorning, but in this release, he has no problem mixing prog rock with jazz fusion. The album is full of guests, but perhaps the biggest one is King Crimson’s legendary bassist and Chapman stick player Tony Levin playing upright bass. Continue Reading